I got into school for nothing-Chapter 154
I got into school for nothing (154)
Lesson 31. The last spoonful is always the most annoying - 4
“Tsk, how anticlimactic.”
The treasure chest that appeared in this room was made entirely of silver, both the box and its frame.
Ignoring the material of the box, it was the first time the frame wasn't gold.
Truth be told, from Room 81 to Room 89, he hadn't really done anything special beyond simply crushing every enemy in sight, so he was grateful enough that a treasure chest had appeared at all.
“Your standards have gotten strange, Ban. It’s a silver box. I heard even regular students rarely encounter silver boxes.”
“You’re just as strange, As Light. A treasure chest itself is a rare sight.”
“Now that you mention it, you’re right. ......Well, the box probably appeared because we exploited the Trick Room’s rules.”
Using mechanical familiars because machines were strengthened, or transforming familiars into machines...... neither was something just anyone could do.
Even though their party had continued to achieve unconventional breakthroughs, this was the first time a treasure chest had appeared since Room 40.
‘I hope it’s something that helps us break through the remaining rooms...... but it’s unlikely things will align so perfectly.’
Ban Yuwon took a short, deep breath, then exchanged glances with his party before approaching the box.
He then recovered all the 'Seal' concepts protecting the box and opened it without hesitation―― inside was a single ring.
It was a simple silver ring, befitting the treasure chest, but its central part was wide, making it look as if something was engraved on it.
“A dud?”
“We don’t know yet, maybe it has an ability like ‘temporarily grants machine status’......!”
“Just give up, Ban Yuwon.”
Seal Ring 500 [Seal 450, Amplify 50]
“Hmm?”
Even with the analysis of his Omniscient Eye alone, he couldn't fully grasp the item's abilities.
One thing was certain: it wasn't an anti-machine artifact.
Ban Yuwon picked it up and examined it closely.
Soon, he realized it was a signet ring, designed for pressing a stamp.
Didn't people in Western cultures often pour melted wax to seal letters, then press a ring or necklace bearing a family crest onto it to mark it?
“““Ah.”””
“Huh? Why are all three of you making that sound in unison?”
“Look at the ring, Yuwon.”
As Ban Yuwon lowered his gaze, he saw the engraving on the ring slowly changing its appearance.
His own name, Ban Yuwon, was being engraved in Chinese characters.
“......Could this be?”
“It’s a bound artifact. Not that I was planning to take it anyway.”
“I don’t think I’d use it well either. I’ll concede it to Ban.”
“Me...... Ah! If you buy me a pretty ring later instead...... *Kya-ang!*”
As Rucell subtly revealed her greed and was subdued by Dokgo Yeon behind him, As Light explained the artifact’s information like so:
If one points the ring at a target they wish to seal and injects mana, the target will be sealed.
Yeah, he probably didn't need that much explanation.
“Don’t be ridiculous, that would make it the strongest artifact in the world. It’s stronger than the One Ring.”
“There would be limits, but that’s what my status window said, at least. And what’s the One Ring?”
He didn’t seem to be lying.
Only then did he understand why the party’s reaction had been ambiguous.
It was because everyone knew that while the description sounded amazing, it wouldn't actually be so straightforward.
“Shall I test it?”
In truth, Ban Yuwon had a deep connection with the concept of 'Seal'.
The treasure chest he had just opened, for instance, had the concept of 'Seal' firmly imbued in it.
Even the talismans they frequently used contained the concept of 'Seal', and wasn't sealing essential when making elixir jam?
Because of this, he had even developed a habit of collecting 'Seal' concepts from various places and storing them in his Code Core, just in case he ran short of them at a crucial moment.
“By making a talisman.”
He created a mana-storage talisman, and instead of engraving the concept of 'Seal' into it, he lightly imbued the ring with mana and pressed it onto the talisman.
To his surprise, the concept of 'Seal' was truly imbued into the talisman.
It looked no different from when he usually imbued concepts.
“Uh...”
Ban Yuwon was dumbfounded.
The mana consumption was minimal, and the depth of the 'Seal' concept within the Seal Ring hadn't decreased at all, yet a new 'Seal' concept had been created.
While its specific applications might be niche, it was an incredibly useful item for Ban Yuwon!
If this was the case, there was no need to painstakingly collect 'Seal' concepts... No, wait.
“Can it be imbued as well?”
He immediately imbued all 200 'Seal' concepts he had recovered from opening the treasure chest into the ring.
Then, the 'Seal' depth, which was 450, rose to 455!
“200 converted to 5, that’s tough.”
But as the depth of the 'Seal' increased, the artifact's performance would improve, so he went ahead and imbued all the 'Seal' concepts he possessed into the ring, finally reaching a perfect 500.
This wasn't the end.
After a moment of thought, he used soul flame to separate about 10 units of his soul, imbuing it into the ring along with 10 units of resonance.
‘Since my name is already engraved on it, wouldn’t it be more effective if a part of my soul was also imbued?’
It was an attempt based on a rather shallow idea, but the result was excellent.
During the imbuing process, a mutation was triggered, combining soul and resonance into one, resulting in a 'Strengthen' depth of 50.
Seal Ring [Seal 500, Amplify 50, Strengthen 50]
Soul and resonance combining into 'Strengthen' might seem strange at first glance, but the two concepts merely interlocked well, resulting in the ring's performance being enhanced.
Both 'Soul' and 'Resonance' were clearly contained within the concept of 'Strengthen', so there was no problem.
As proof, when he slipped the ring onto his left index finger, it began to emit a faint light and vibrate periodically.
“Ban, that ring seems to be pulsing.”
“It’s proof that it’s resonating properly with me. It was a really good acquisition...... though it has nothing to do with machines.”
―Hey, Ban Yuwon.
‘Huh?’
Cellon, suddenly interjecting, questioned him.
―If it can seal, could it possibly be used to undo seals as well?
‘Things aren’t that easy in this world.’
―You’re the one who still doesn’t understand the principles of magic. Powerful forces of the same kind are bound to repel each other. What do you think would happen if your power of ‘Seal’ clashed with someone else’s ‘Seal’? They’d fight for dominance, cancel each other out, and both be destroyed.
Ban Yuwon imagined two massive forces bickering over a single target, each claiming they’d seal it, and then spoke.
‘Wouldn’t Solomon make a judgment?’
―Stop spouting nonsense and quickly, try it on me. ......No, not me, this staff!
He hadn't expected Cellon to make such a suggestion.
However, as he listened, it sounded convincing. Even though the staff itself didn't have the concept of 'Seal', considering that Cellon was sealed within this staff... it was certainly worth a try.
‘If you get more sealed by mistake, it’s not my problem.’
―I’m your partner, show a little more concern!
That's true.
He felt a bit guilty for keeping her from her full transformation, so Ban Yuwon didn't argue and submissively injected Hyungi into the ring.
―It would have less resistance if there was no mana left in the staff. Take my mana too.
‘Okay.’
Neither of them thought they could completely undo her seal.
That's why they could burn all their mana without regret.
While he was at it, Ban Yuwon even took out a few mana talismans and tore them up.
A vast amount of mana was absorbed into his entire body, circulating through him in accordance with the flow of Hyunsingong, converting into Hyungi, and then entirely injected into the Seal Ring, causing it to emit a brilliant light.
‘Not to seal, but with the feeling of stripping away Cellon’s seal.’
The moment he brought the ring close to the staff.
To his surprise, he felt something he hadn't perceived at all violently repel it.
This was the very force he needed to resist!
Ban Yuwon, having pinpointed his target, pushed the ring even more forcefully.
Mana, imbued with the form of 'Seal', amplified and strengthened, was emitted.
And it clashed with a colossal force, then dissipated.
―Constellation [Breath of Life] opens its eyes wide in shock. It fiercely demands why you met that witch.
―Constellation [Clock of the Toy Legion] turns pale with dismay and urgently tells you to stop.
Oh, these guys were alive.
Could these two also have been involved in Cellon's sealing?
But that wasn't important right now.
Focus on burning away Cellon's seal as much as possible!
―Aah...... Aaaaaaaaaah!
Cellon let out a sound that was either a groan or a scream.
The Seal Ring vibrated violently, resisting the overwhelming pressure.
It was truly fortunate that he had strengthened the ring before attempting this.
Otherwise, this precious artifact might have ended up as a single-use item!
“Keuk......!”
The limit soon arrived.
Surprisingly, not from the staff itself, but from an external source—a massive shadow stretched down from the room’s ceiling, engulfing them.
“Wha―!”
The moment the shadow tried to swallow Cellon and Ban Yuwon, Ban Yuwon, feeling the sealing power deplete, grabbed Cellon and hurriedly retreated.
“Hup!”
Dokgo Yeon, who had been watching from behind, swiftly stepped forward and cut through the shadow, ending everything.
“From now on, you’d better do things like that outside the Tower, Ban Yuwon.”
Dokgo Yeon, sheathing her short sword, advised him with her cross-shaped pupils glinting.
“From the moment you started doing something with that staff, the Tower vibrated like crazy.”
“Yes, I’ll definitely do that...”
―......It’s meaningless if it’s not the Tower.
Unlike Ban Yuwon, who submissively apologized, thinking he’d made a mistake, Cellon spoke in a noticeably more mature voice.
―Because the Tower was what sealed me. Naturally, the Tower must also be what unseals me. It’s dangerous, but that’s how it has to be.
‘So, was there any progress?’
―To some extent. ......But I’m sorry, I don’t think I can tell you about it.
‘Even though you asked me to avenge you?’
―That’s fine. Our enemies are the same.
To still spout such unsettling lines.
As if trying to appease the angered Ban Yuwon, Cellon spoke.
―Thanks to you, a lot of my conceptual seals have also been undone. Check the staff.
‘That...’
XXXX[Soul 800, Hyungi 600, Curse 300, Starlight Magic 200]
Ban Yuwon, examining the artifact with his Omniscient Eye as she instructed, narrowed his eyes.
‘I have two questions.’
―The artifact’s name being broken is because my status has risen, and Starlight Magic is my unique magic. It’s a superior form of light magic, and also a magical system with a slightly different nature from photon magic.
Unique magic referred to special magic like Ban Yuwon’s Language Magic or Yumina’s plant magic.
‘Then I can’t learn it.’
―With your overpowered abilities, you might be able to imitate it, but it wouldn’t be exactly the same. There’s no need for that anyway. I’ll use magic for you.
‘......Did your personality change a little?’
―I’m just putting in as much effort as you did for me.
She said that, but Cellon’s personality had clearly matured.
No need to argue further.
The important thing was that Cellon’s power had more than doubled.
She would be a great help not only for explorations from Room 91 onwards but also for the next special activity, which was full of uncertainties.
Whether it was due to Cellon’s changed personality or not, the staff’s appearance also seemed to have become noticeably calmer. Ban Yuwon put it away for now and finally began the work he had intended to do earlier.
He was going to create mechanical familiars using all sorts of machine parts and concepts obtained from the battles with armored insects that began in Room 84!
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